Mystery We Write Tour: Madison Johns

The writing bug bit Madison Johns at the age of 44 and she's written three books since then. As the publishing climate changed, she took a risk and decided to self-publish, including her first novel, Armed and Outrageous, which went to number one on Amazon’s bestsellers list during her free promo. Most recently, her thriller, The Bone Extractor, was accepted by MasterKoda Select Publishing and will be available soon. For more about Madison's work, visit her blog at this link.

What have you learned from writing your novels?
I learned how to write mystery with a quirky set of characters. It’s great to write a good mystery, but it’s the characters that make it most interesting. I learned that taking a risk and writing something unique can work out. While my book stretched the limits of what most people think they know about persons of a certain age, I believe it's true to life.

Do you have a "day job?" What is it and how do you write around it?
I work 12 hour shifts as a nursing care assistant on the nightshift. When I wrote Armed and Outrageous I went without a lot of sleep. It’s hard for me to stay on a specific schedule, but I love to write in the middle of the night on my off nights.

What mysteries or strange occurrences in your real life have inspired your writing life?
My life inspires me all the time. I did work at a nursing home and many events and character portrayals came from the people I have cared for. That’s when I realized no matter how crazy or zany the character is it’s not that much of a stretch from real life.

About Armed and Outrageous
Agnes Barton is not your typical senior citizen living on the shores of Lake Huron. She drives a red hot Mustang, shops at Victoria's Secret, rankles local police officials, and has a knack for sticking her nose where it doesn't belong. What does a murder that happened 43 years ago have to do with missing tourist Jennifer Martin? Agnes makes it her personal mission to find out, and she's not letting the fact she's 72 get in the way.

Win an eBook of Armed and Outrageous by leaving a comment below. Winners will be announced on Dec. 11. Be sure to check out my guest post about Conquering Venus at Jean Lauzier's blog at this link.